


Lampblack

by melannen



Category: Pirates of the Caribbean
Genre: Established Relationship, Other, Roleplay
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-11-23
Updated: 2003-11-23
Packaged: 2017-10-04 03:26:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/melannen/pseuds/melannen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(IV) A man and a woman /<br/>Are one. /<br/>A man and a woman and a sparrow /<br/>Are one.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lampblack

**Author's Note:**

> I should *not* be here. No, really, I shouldn't. I'm in a committed relationship with HP fandom, have too much unfinished already, and have *no time*. But. Pirates.
> 
> A little character sketch. Inspired by the fact that this has happened to me while playing with fire. Frequently. Including once in art class, and nobody told me for three hours. Man, that was embarrassing.

Elizabeth Turner sat up reading one of the pirate romances of her girlhood by the light of an old hurricane lamp. She ought to have been asleep next to Will, in their elegant canopied bed, but she knew she'd only toss and turn, restless with disconnected dreams of the sea.

She stared contemplatively into the dim flame of the lamp, too drowsy to concentrate on reading of the long-familiar pathways of adventure. A storm lantern, they called it sometimes; the fire inside protected by the tall glass chimney from the wildness of the wind and weather, but still not smothered, still giving a clear light. Only this particular lantern, from too little care and allowing the wick to go untrimmed, had begun to build up a coat of sooty lampblack on the inside of the glass, shadowing the illumination it gave. Elizabeth absently rubbed at the dark film, heedless of the nearness of the yellow flame as she tried to clear away the grime.

She turned back to her book, eventually, but too long staring into fire had left her dazzled, unaccustomed to the dimness, and the words were a dark blur obscured by the afterimage of the flame. She closed her eyes and rubbed at them, trying to massage away the fire and the strain of too little sleep and too much working in too little light; then sighed, and tried again to read.

"Elizabeth?" Will called. She heard him roll out of the bed and pad over to stand behind her, a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine, Will," she said. "I just couldn't sleep again. I didn't want to wake you." She closed the book and stood to offer him a smile.

"Elizabeth," he said, and then, "Elizabeth! Your eyes?"

"What?" Confused, she raised a hand to her face, and then stopped, seeing the dark lampblack that had coated her fingertips. "God," she said weakly. The lampblack, she'd gotten it all over her eyes. "I must look absolutely ridiculous."

"You look beautiful," Will said intensely, and then he kissed her.

A kiss from Will was certainly something to be taken advantage of with all the resources at one's disposal, even if the motivation for it was a bit cloudy, and she did, too, only slightly hampered by having to keep her soiled hands from leaving marks on his clean nightshirt.

When he pulled away, however, it was with an oddly sad expression on his face. He held her at arm's length, searchingly, and said, "Elizabeth, are you happy here? With me?"

"Of course I am, Will! Why--" And then she realized what he must have seen, looking at her, and couldn't help it: she cracked up. "Will, it wasn't-- the lampblack-- I didn't--" She got control again, finally, but almost lost it at the expression on his face. "It was an accident, Will, I got soot on my hands from playing with the lantern and -- and forgot. I wasn't trying to be symbolic or anything."

"Oh," he said. "Good, then."

Elizabeth turned away from him, running another finger along the inside of the glass, blackening it again with the caress. "Although," she added, holding the finger up, "Now that I think of it--" she reached toward him, and said, "Close your eyes and keep still."

"What? No-- wait-- Elizabeth! I-- don't-- wear-- eye-- makeup-- stop!-- Elizabeth-- don't get it in my -- arr -- help!-- mrmph ... You cheated!"

"Pirate!" she reminded him, grinning.


End file.
